Riding a road or stationary bike can burn calories and work up a sweat, but because of the lack of muscle use during cycling, it can be less effective for weight loss than other workout routines. Add to that the monotony of sitting and pedaling for 30 minutes or longer and you have a recipe for a lack of effort. Varying how you ride -- indoors or out -- can help you use more muscles and burn more calories.

Weight-Loss Workout Format

Any time you exercise, follow a four-step routine to maximize your benefit and decrease pain and soreness. Start your cycling warmup with several minutes of moderate intensity movements that gently stretch your muscles and raise your heart rate. Once your muscles are warm, begin your workout at the maximum effort level you can sustain for the rest of your workout. Reduce your pace if you need to keep taking breaks. When you are just about finished riding, reduce your pace over the course of 5 minutes to gradually lower your heart rate and breathing rate. When you’re sufficiently cooled down, finish your workout with a good stretch of your muscles.

Calories Burned

Riding a bike at a leisurely pace of less than 10 miles per hour burns approximately 290 calories per hour for a person weighing 160 pounds, according to the Mayo Clinic. In comparison, walking at a brisk pace of 3.5 mph burns roughly 315 calories per hour. The faster you pedal or more effort you use to pedal against higher gear setting or going uphill, the more you’ll raise your heart rate. A 155-pound person pedaling at a vigorous speed burns almost 500 calories, according to the website NutriStrategy. Calories burned per hour varies based on your height, weight, heart rate, resistance and pedaling speed.

Exercise Bike Routines

If you’re using an exercise bike, don’t pedal in the same position with the same gear setting at the same speed your entire time. Raise your gear setting or resistance level to make it harder to pedal. After several minutes of this, reduce the resistance and start pedaling much faster. Stand on the bike’s pedals if you’re on an upright bike to emphasize different muscles. Add one-minute sprints at a very high speed every five minutes to increase your calorie burn.

Outdoor Routines

You’ll get the most out of your outdoor cycling workouts if you map out a course beforehand that has hills and long stretches of uninterrupted flat terrain. Riding up hills makes you use more calf, hamstring, butt and hip muscles. During uphill portions of your ride, you can stand on your pedals to vary your muscle use and create a longer down stroke. When you come to long stretches of flat terrain, reduce your gear setting and do sprints. During your recovery from hills and sprints, set your gears so they provide less resistance. Make your road bike more versatile by buying a bike stand or trainer you can use indoors. You’ll be better able to do sprints indoors, where there’s no traffic or other hazards.

Resources

About the Author

Sam Ashe-Edmunds has been writing and lecturing for decades. He has worked in the corporate and nonprofit arenas as a C-Suite executive, serving on several nonprofit boards. He is an internationally traveled sport science writer and lecturer. He has been published in print publications such as Entrepreneur, Tennis, SI for Kids, Chicago Tribune, Sacramento Bee, and on websites such Smart-Healthy-Living.net, SmartyCents and Youthletic. Edmunds has a bachelor's degree in journalism.